Basics

You are presented with a few choices at the outset of each match. One of these is which class you play as -- we cover these in great detail in our Classes section. Another is where you physically start -- you can do this at the "Enlist Now" screen. Here you can toggle whether you want to auto spawn (which will place you at a friendly flag nearest to the front line -- the front line is where the most kills are currently happening) or choose your starting point.

If you are playing a Quick Match, chances are you will be dumped into an active battle with many possible spawn points. Check your map and you'll see your spawn point options. These consist of your team's captured flags and your starting base. If you are starting a match from the beginning, you will only be able to start at your team's home base.

The Front Line

The front line, represented on your map and display as crossed yellow swords, is a region in which the most kills are happening. The front line is always a flag. You can jump to the front line to defend your flag and join the fracas, or use it to strategically place yourself for prime sniping. Generally, if you stay at the front line, you will have ample chances to kill -- and be killed. Thus, strategically, always hopping into the fray isn't necessarily a good strategy. It can certainly help boost your score if you have a quick trigger finger.

There's no Place Like Home Base

Your home base is your initial starting point on each map. The spawn points are always the same on each map for each side (Japanese and U.S.), but you'll switch sides randomly as you play. On two maps, Iwo Jima and Wake Island, the home base for both sides is on an aircraft carrier just off the coast of the islands. You'll need to use a boat or plane to reach the shore -- although you can swim. The home bases on Guadalcanal are on the opposite ends of the island.

All home bases have one thing in common: an air strip and two planes that spawn there. Thus, returning to home base throughout the fight via respawning is a useful tactic if you want to pick up a pair of wings. You can see a plane icon on the landing strip when it spawns. Home bases also come equipped with anti-aircraft guns to keep enemy planes away from your spawning men and vehicles so be sure to use them. The Guadalcanal base comes with both tanks and cars to help you get around the island, but no boats. For more on vehicles and maps, check out our sections on those respective topics.

A Healthy Soldier Is a Not-Dead Soldier

Your health is not apparent in Battlefield 1943, but if you get hit, a red circle will show the direction you were hit from, and your screen will turn various shades of red. Luckily, you can recover your health entirely by avoiding damage for a brief period. Thus, if you take fire and book it to cover, you may just survive. The catch is that if you are hit, you are marked on enemy radar and become an obvious target, even if you are hiding. To shake your opponents entirely, you'll have to stay out of sight for an extended period of time.

Ammunition

You ammo supply will replenish automatically after you fully empty a particular weapon's clip or supply. For instance, if you plant two C4 charges, the supply won't replenish until you plant (and detonate) the third. A small meter next to the ammo meter in the lower right of the screen shows the time until a gun's ammo returns.